Chapter 12
"How much further is this place we've been driving for like eight hours now?" Lynn tried not to sound annoyed but she was failing miserably. Before they left the hotel she picked up enough food and drink to last them the whole trip so they wouldn't have to stop anywhere. Well, other than to use the bathroom of course, which was done on the side of the road.
He glanced in her direction with a hint of a smile. He could tell she was getting tired and he didn't blame her, he was tired too. "Are we almost to Deaconville?" he asked.
"It's the next exit, where do I need to go?" she asked shifting in her seat. She glanced at him cleaning his knife and wondered why he was doing it.
He held up the knife as if he were inspecting it, "At the exit take a right and go eight miles then turn left and go another four miles and there should be a really long drive way on the left that goes between to cliffs. The ranch is just beyond it, you can't miss it."
"Thank God," she mumbled as she wiped the sweat from her head. "Do you live alone?" she asked.
He smiled and began to polish his knife, "Why?"
"Just curious," she shrugged.
He glanced at her for a long moment, "The woman I bought it from lives there as well. She keeps the place up, the horses, things like that."
"You've got horses?" she asked excited.
"Oh yeah, we've got six and a couple of dogs too," he mentioned.
She smiled and chewed on her lip a little. She wasn't sure how to ask her next question. It was something that had been plaguing her for some time. "You're not married or don't have any kids?" she pried quit boldly. Lynn you stupid idiot she berated herself.
He shook his head, "Never had time for it. Other than Lucas, Mija was the only company I had."
"Mija," she said. "That's a beautiful name."
"She's a beautiful woman," he noted.
A pang of regret rushed through her. Did he have some kind of relationship with this woman? If so, why is he bringing me to his home she wondered. Then what he said caught her attention. How could he tell she was beautiful? He must've known her before he lost his eyes. "You've seen her?" she questioned surprised.
He laughed, "I don't have to see her to know she's beautiful. The sound of her voice, her personality, the feel of her face."
She had to clear her throat to keep from saying anything rude. She didn't understand her reaction. So what if he lived with a woman. It was only a matter of time before she would be leaving anyway. It wasn't like she would be interfering with them.
"You don't have to worry," he broke the silence quietly.
She realized he had spoken, "What?"
He broke into a smile, "Mija, she won't bite you. She's a harmless old woman who would probably lick you to death instead."
She laughed nervously, actually relieved. Old woman she thought. That makes me feel a little better, but it still doesn't change the fact she won't treat me like some invader she thought.
He continued polishing his knife. By her attitude he could tell she was worried about being in the way of another woman. He only hoped that she and Mija got along. He believed they would, they had a lot in common. They were both low maintenance and weren't hard to please, they were country women. He smiled at the imagery he thought up.
"You know I won't be staying long," she interrupted his thoughts.
He stopped cleaning his knife, "We've already had this discussion."
"I know that but, you said that DeMarco didn't have many if any connections out here right? If that's the case then I don't need to be in your hair much longer," she tried to explain. I need to get away from you before I get in any deeper she thought sadly. It's already too late Lynn, you've got feelings for him now she thought.
He ignored her reasoning and resumed cleaning his knife. Fact was, he enjoyed her company and didn't want her to leave. He more than enjoyed her company he took comfort in it. He figured it would be better to wait till the morning to have any kind of discussion about her leaving so soon. So, he ignored her comment.
She noticed his disinterest and sighed. It was almost dark and they were almost to the ranch. I'm too tired to argue anyway she resigned.